Waymo: Expecting driverless taxis to respect bike lanes "too high a bar"
20 hours ago
- #autonomous vehicles
- #cycling infrastructure
- #road safety
- Waymo's autonomous vehicles are programmed to enter and block cycle lanes for passenger pickups and drop-offs, despite it being illegal and unsafe.
- Cyclists have been injured due to Waymo's practices, including a San Francisco case where a passenger door struck a cyclist, leading to a lawsuit.
- Waymo claims that respecting cycle lanes is 'too high a bar' because customers expect to be dropped off in them.
- The company is expanding globally, with plans for a driverless taxi service in London, raising safety concerns about adapting to complex urban environments.
- Critics argue that autonomous vehicles could increase overall car trips and crashes, even if they are safer per mile than human drivers.